I just came back from perugia, Italy where I attended an excelent ISWA Beacon Conference on Biowaste Management organized by ISWA Italia. Congratulations to ISWA Italia and of course to my good friends David Newman and Enzo Favoino for their timeless efforts and the results achieved.
The conference structure and content were of a very high level and I have to say I was surprised by the steps that have been already done in certain EU countries regarding biowaste management. The program can be found at https://www.iswa.org/fileadmin/user_upload/_temp_/ISWA_Beacon_BTW_programme_01.pdf
Conference attendants and speakers supported with several strong arguments the neccessity of a biowaste directive, something which I think is required more than ever. Allow me to mention the lectures of Enzo Favoino, Florian Amlinger, Cestmir Hirdinka, Francesc Giro, Ricardo Rolandi and Eric Lombardi as the most valuable for me.
During the conference I made some new friends and I am sure I am going to meet them again and share ideas and concepts. Eric, Florian and Cestmir I am keen to see you again.
4.17.2010
Composting green waste saves as much CO2 as energy recovery ?
This is from "Science for Environmental Policy", issue 191, 15 April 2010
"Recycling green waste as compost could match the environmental benefits of converting it into renewable energy, in terms of CO2 savings, according to new German research. It suggests that the two forms of waste management should be seen as complementary and both should receive subsidies.
Green waste is biodegradable waste, usually from gardens and parks, and includes grass, hedge trimmings, leaves and tree trunks. It can be used to produce energy in biomass power stations and receives a renewable energy subsidy in Germany. It can also be recycled as compost, which reduces the extraction of peat – an important sink for CO2. However, composting does not receive financial support in Germany. The EU is currently developing policy to encourage composting and develop standards for composting across the EU1.
The research compared the environmental benefits of energy recovery from green waste and of recycling green waste using 81 samples. It analysed the CO2 balance of each system by estimating the release and savings of CO2 at the different stages of the process chain. For energy recovery this included the transport, shredding, incineration and the CO2 saved from the renewable energy produced. For recycling this included stages such as transport, composting and CO2 saved by replacing peat. Four different types of green waste were considered that differed in their amount of wood, herbaceous/grassy material and soil.
The results demonstrated that waste with a high percentage of wood produced the most CO2 savings for both composting and energy recovery whilst those with only herbaceous and soil components produced the least savings. The CO2 savings from energy recovery varied from 126 to 1040kg of CO2 saved per tonne of green waste, depending on the type of waste and its composition. The CO2 savings from recycling varied from 259 to 1193kg of CO2 per tonne of green waste, again depending on the type of waste. This indicates that the environmental gains, in terms of CO2 savings, were similar for both energy recovery and recycling of green waste.
Notably, green waste with a high percentage of herbaceous/grassy content and soil content had twice the CO2 savings from recycling as from energy recovery. This is probably because this type of waste has low heating values, due to high water and ash content, and is therefore better for composting purposes.
The researchers suggested that energy recovery and recycling of green waste should be judged as complementary systems. It is unlikely that one method on its own will achieve the desired reduction in CO2 levels and a combination is more likely to lead to a significant decrease in greenhouse gas emissions. As such they recommend that recycling of green waste be awarded equivalent financial support as the use of green waste to produce renewable energy.
1. See: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/compost/index.htm
Source: Kranert, M., Gottschall, R., Bruns, C. & Hafner, G. (2010). Energy or compost from green waste? A CO2-based assessment. Waste Management. 30: 697-701.
Contact: martin.kranert@iswa.uni-stuttgart.de "
"Recycling green waste as compost could match the environmental benefits of converting it into renewable energy, in terms of CO2 savings, according to new German research. It suggests that the two forms of waste management should be seen as complementary and both should receive subsidies.
Green waste is biodegradable waste, usually from gardens and parks, and includes grass, hedge trimmings, leaves and tree trunks. It can be used to produce energy in biomass power stations and receives a renewable energy subsidy in Germany. It can also be recycled as compost, which reduces the extraction of peat – an important sink for CO2. However, composting does not receive financial support in Germany. The EU is currently developing policy to encourage composting and develop standards for composting across the EU1.
The research compared the environmental benefits of energy recovery from green waste and of recycling green waste using 81 samples. It analysed the CO2 balance of each system by estimating the release and savings of CO2 at the different stages of the process chain. For energy recovery this included the transport, shredding, incineration and the CO2 saved from the renewable energy produced. For recycling this included stages such as transport, composting and CO2 saved by replacing peat. Four different types of green waste were considered that differed in their amount of wood, herbaceous/grassy material and soil.
The results demonstrated that waste with a high percentage of wood produced the most CO2 savings for both composting and energy recovery whilst those with only herbaceous and soil components produced the least savings. The CO2 savings from energy recovery varied from 126 to 1040kg of CO2 saved per tonne of green waste, depending on the type of waste and its composition. The CO2 savings from recycling varied from 259 to 1193kg of CO2 per tonne of green waste, again depending on the type of waste. This indicates that the environmental gains, in terms of CO2 savings, were similar for both energy recovery and recycling of green waste.
Notably, green waste with a high percentage of herbaceous/grassy content and soil content had twice the CO2 savings from recycling as from energy recovery. This is probably because this type of waste has low heating values, due to high water and ash content, and is therefore better for composting purposes.
The researchers suggested that energy recovery and recycling of green waste should be judged as complementary systems. It is unlikely that one method on its own will achieve the desired reduction in CO2 levels and a combination is more likely to lead to a significant decrease in greenhouse gas emissions. As such they recommend that recycling of green waste be awarded equivalent financial support as the use of green waste to produce renewable energy.
1. See: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/compost/index.htm
Source: Kranert, M., Gottschall, R., Bruns, C. & Hafner, G. (2010). Energy or compost from green waste? A CO2-based assessment. Waste Management. 30: 697-701.
Contact: martin.kranert@iswa.uni-stuttgart.de "
3.25.2010
No Need to Waste?
ISWA and NVRD are organizing the 2010 ISWA Beacon Conference on Waste Minimization and Recycling on May the 20th and21st in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands.
The title of the event is representative of its content: "No Need to Waste".
As Waste prevention and recycling are becoming more and more integral parts of sustainable waste management and resource management there a lot of advanced approaches that can be rapidly dispersed and tested. This conference will provide participants with the latest information to improve their knowledge and performance in this field.
ISWA and the ISWA National Member in the Netherlands – NVRD have assembled a rich and exciting program that covers all the important topics for anyone with an interest in ‘Waste minimization and recycling’.
Among the confirmed speakers are Atilio Savino (ISWA president, Argentina), Stefan Bringezu (Wuppertal Institute, Germany), Hans-Christian Eberl (European Commission, Austria), Rachel Gray (WRAP, United Kingdom), Pål Mårtensson (City of Göteborg, Sweden), David Newman (ISWA Italia, Italy), Maarten Goorhuis (NVRD, Netherlands), Jan-Willem Scheijgrond (Philips, Netherlands), Jean-Jacques Dohogne (ACR+, Belgium).
The Beacon conference will be an exquisite opportunity to strengthen and extend networks with other experts and waste professionals from all over Europe and other parts of the world.
To register and for more information, please follow this link: http://www.iswabeaconconference.com/
The preliminary program will soon be published on the conference website.
I am going to be there and make my own contribution to this very interesting conference. I hope I will meet a lot of friends and coleagues.
CU there mates
The title of the event is representative of its content: "No Need to Waste".
As Waste prevention and recycling are becoming more and more integral parts of sustainable waste management and resource management there a lot of advanced approaches that can be rapidly dispersed and tested. This conference will provide participants with the latest information to improve their knowledge and performance in this field.
ISWA and the ISWA National Member in the Netherlands – NVRD have assembled a rich and exciting program that covers all the important topics for anyone with an interest in ‘Waste minimization and recycling’.
Among the confirmed speakers are Atilio Savino (ISWA president, Argentina), Stefan Bringezu (Wuppertal Institute, Germany), Hans-Christian Eberl (European Commission, Austria), Rachel Gray (WRAP, United Kingdom), Pål Mårtensson (City of Göteborg, Sweden), David Newman (ISWA Italia, Italy), Maarten Goorhuis (NVRD, Netherlands), Jan-Willem Scheijgrond (Philips, Netherlands), Jean-Jacques Dohogne (ACR+, Belgium).
The Beacon conference will be an exquisite opportunity to strengthen and extend networks with other experts and waste professionals from all over Europe and other parts of the world.
To register and for more information, please follow this link: http://www.iswabeaconconference.com/
The preliminary program will soon be published on the conference website.
I am going to be there and make my own contribution to this very interesting conference. I hope I will meet a lot of friends and coleagues.
CU there mates
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